The violent or agitated patient.

Area of Science:

• Emergency Medicine
• Patient Safety
• Behavioral Health

Background:

• Agitated and violent patients present significant risks in emergency settings.
• These patients may pose threats to staff, harm themselves, or have underlying medical conditions causing their behavior.

Purpose of the Study:

• To outline high-risk scenarios involving violent patients in emergency departments.
• To describe effective mitigation strategies for managing such patients.

Main Methods:

• Review of high-risk situations encountered in emergency care.
• Description of evidence-based and practical mitigation tactics.

Main Results:

• Identification of specific patient behaviors and clinical situations that indicate high risk.
• Presentation of a range of interventions to de-escalate and manage aggression.

Conclusions:

• Prompt and effective management of violent patients is crucial for safety.
• A systematic approach is needed to address patient behavior, underlying causes, and safety concerns.